One dish I really like is stuffed peppers, except I don’t care for large pieces of pepper.  As a kid, I just gave my pepper to my mom.  I think she ate everyone’s pepper and not much filling while the rest of us ate just the filling.  I revamped it to suit my family’s taste and to encourage my kids to eat the peppers (and me too).  The original recipe didn’t have nearly enough seasoning for us, so I upped the amounts – you can adjust them to your family’s taste.  This is also a great way to use up some leftovers – rice, peppers, hamburg, ends of bread, add some spices bake just long enough to heat through.

How pretty!  I normally only use green peppers to make this, but I had some leftover peppers from a veggie tray so I used them.

• 2-3 peppers, diced
• 1 lb ground beef browned with 1 small onion (or 1 tsp onion salt)
• Prepare 2 cups cooked rice

To the beef & onion, add the following:

• 1t salt
• 1t celery seed
• 1/2t paprika
• 1t curry powder
• 2T Worcestershire sauce

Mix well, then stir in the rice and peppers.  Top with bread crumbs.  Spread in a 9×9 pan and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

We go through a lot of english muffins around here! Hubby has two egg & cheese sandwiches on them every morning for breakfast, I eat half of one with peanut butter for breakfast everyday, and frequently my kids eat them too. There was no way I could afford to buy them at the rate we were eating them! Even on sale at 4/$4, I could only store so many in my freezer – no where near enough to last us until the next sale.  Plus, I’m trying to avoid a lot of processed stuff and HFCS in particular.  So, when I found this recipe and they came out perfectly on the first try, I knew it was a keeper.

Adapted from here.

• Sprinkle yeast over warm (about 105° F. is ideal) water and let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes.
• In a large bowl, mix milk, oil and honey. Add egg and stir until well blended. Stir in the yeast mixture.
• Add flour, gluten, and salt.  Stir until well mixed.  It will be a little sticky.
• Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size – about an hour.
• Turn risen dough out onto a work surface that has been liberally dusted with cornmeal and pat or roll to about 1/2″ thick. Cut into approximately 3 inch rounds with a jar lid or similar size round cutter.
• Cover the muffins with a towel and let rise for 20-30 minutes.
• Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat. Using a spatula, carefully transfer muffins to hot griddle. Cook about 4 minutes, turn and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Outsides should be golden brown and crusty, insides should be soft, but not gooey.These freeze great!  I normally make a double batch, split them and freeze them.  That way they’re ready to toast straight from the freezer.

Every now and then, my husband will come home from work raving about some food he’s tried at the office party.  It was good enough that he asked for the recipe and of course he expected me to make it.  I’m always skeptical, but I should know better – he’s gotten some winners!!  This salad is delicious and perfect for hot summer days.  I can’t vouch for how healthy it is (or isn’t), but it is tasty and at least cabbage is good for you.

2 packs Ramen noodles, crushed (in my opinion, this is the best part!)
1 head cabbage, washed and chopped into pieces (My sister-in-law uses the bags of cabbage for coleslaw to save herself some time.)

1 stick butter
1/2 c sliced almonds (or more, I like lots of almonds)
Brown together

1 c vegetable oil
1 c white sugar
1/2 c white vinegar
1-2T soy sauce
Heat together to melt

Toss everything together in a large bowl. Cool for several hours.  Enjoy!

I think it tastes even better on the second and third day…by the fourth day, it’s usually a little wilty, but normally it doesn’t last that long!